Archive for February, 2012

Hunger is the world’s number 1 health risk killing more people a year that AIDS, malaria and TB COMBINES.

There are more hungry people in the world than the total combined population of the USA, Canada, and the European Union.

Women make up a little over half of the world’s population but account for over 60% of those that are hungry.

Malnutrition contributes to 5 (FIVE) MILLION deaths of children under the age of 5 each year in developing nations.

1 in 5 American children are at risk of hunger.

14.5% of US households are food insecure.

All of this can be cured.

The world produces enough food to feed everyone. World agriculture produces 17 percent more calories per person today than it did 30 years ago, despite a 70 percent population increase. This is enough to provide everyone in the world with at least 2,720 kilocalories (kcal) per person per day according to the most recent estimate that we could find.(FAO 2002, p.9). (1)

So if the world produces enough food to feed everyone, why are so many hungry?

Poverty, for one, political power/control for another and perpetual conflict for the world’s resources and the most viscous of all reasons: inequality. It seems food has become a thing of luxury even though it is a thing of necessity.

My question to you: what will YOU do about it?

Ending hungry in the world is absolutely doable- we just have to be willing. We have to be willing to stand up for human rights, end political corruption, end poverty and above all, give a voice to those who feel they have none.

“Well I think there’s going to be a lot of lessons learned, … but I think that the preparedness, the individual to take responsibility to become prepared himself. And to realize that the government can’t always help him.” -David Davis

You are a human being. An obvious statement really but a fact that tends to be over looked.

It is a fact that is over looked because someone along the course of history came up with this ridiculous notion of race.

The idea of race has brought about superiority complexes, horrific acts of violence, and discrimination. We can see many examples of this as we explore history: the Holocaust which was orchestrated by the Nazi regime, the slave trade perpetuated by lazy, greedy European colonists, and the forced removal of entire nations of Native Americans just so illegal immigrant Americans could feed their insatiable appetite to acquire more than they would have ever have use for.

History has taught us that the concept of race can truly be a bad thing.

The truth of the matter is: Race is a man-made concept that does not in reality exist. Human beings exist.

We humans have failed to recognize that race is in fact a sign of the wonder that is the human body. Some humans have black skin which protect them from the sun, while some humans have white skin that allows them to live in colder climates, whilst others have shorter bodies and specialized lungs that allow them to live in high mountain ranges.

How can I be so sure that race is a man-made concept? If it weren’t we could not produce biracial, as they are so called, children. Beyond this, we could not have “mutt” people, as my mother often refers to herself when noting the various geographical locations her ancestors came from.

Think of it this way: There are different breeds of dogs, each owning their own unique physical traits but we can still end up mutts. Why? Because in reality, no matter the breed of K-9, they are at the end of the day nothing more than a dog.

How much money could governments save if they stopped classifying what race everyone in the country was? What would happen if we did away with the question: What is your Race? It takes man hours and money to calculate such racial data- but how much money could be saved if the government just recognized the fact that race is a man-made concept and that people, no matter color, body build, etc are simply human beings?

At the end of the day, you are nothing more than a human and the plethora of homosapien diversity that surrounds you in every day life are also nothing more than human. What makes us different, special and unique are the cultural traditions we tie into our lives and the physical traits which have been provided for our survival.

How much money could governments save if they stopped classifying what ethnicity everyone in the country was? What would happen if we did away with the question: What is your Race? It takes man hours and money to calculate such racial data- but how much money could be saved if the government just recognized the fact that race is a man-made concept and that people, no matter color, body build, etc are simply human beings? -Dauson Stimpson-Gagnon

Something occurred to me the last time I watched The Blind Side: We all love stories like The Blind Side but very few of us are actually willing to write our own version of it in our own lives. Why is it that we love to read and watch stories about those who give and love unconditionally but we are so afraid to do it ourselves? There is some serious hypocrisy happening in society. I think we can all take a lesson from Leigh Anne Tuohy. -Dauson Stimpson-Gagnon

“All human beings, whatever their cultural or historical background, suffer when they are intimidated, imprisoned or tortured . . . We must, therefore, insist on a global consensus, not only on the need to respect human rights worldwide, but also on the definition of these rights . . . for it is the inherent nature of all human beings to yearn for freedom, equality and dignity, and they have an equal right to achieve that.” – 14th Dalai Lama

Every 6 weeks or so I get a picture of my niece who has been promoted to newest belt rank in Tae Kwon Do. She now holds a purple belt and is making excellent headway towards earning her black belt. I couldn’t be more proud of her. In her short little years on this planet she has overcome many challenging things but has found an outlet that allows her to succeed and reach her fullest potential. Over the past several months, my niece has been a very big inspiration to me.

Over the past couple months things have been a bit of a rocky road for me as jobs have fallen through, I’ve learned the true nature of individuals that weren’t very flattering for them and have, as many in this country, dealt with financial hardships.

But then there was the updates about how well my niece is doing. She’s improving in school and takes it seriously when things don’t go right with her classes and hasn’t given up on Tae Kwon Do, excelling and earning belt promotions and placing in tournaments.

I’ve taken a huge lesson from her as she continues to excel regardless of how tough her short life has been, the lesson being never giving up. She hasn’t given up, she copes, adapts, strengthens and moves on and that’s something, that being more than twice her age, I’ve had to start teaching myself.

I wanted to share with you, dear friends, the lesson that this child has taught me. She has taught me, all though it is completely unbeknownst her,that you have got to have the smaller belts before achieving the black belt. In other words, learn to make stumbling blocks stepping stones.